1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a food processor with multi-functional capabilities such as juice extraction, dicing vegetables, and grinding meat, etc.
2. The Prior Arts
A conventional food processor normally has only one single function. If more functions are needed to be added on to it, its total volume will accordingly be increased substantially due to housing more components to be contained in the body of the food processor, and thus will also cost more to manufacture. For example, a conventional juicer has the sole function of extracting juice, and does not possess the capabilities for shredding vegetables and grinding meat. If a food processor is required to have the three previously-mentioned functions simultaneously, three different forms of shredding/slicing tools must be installed in the food processor body thereof, which thus makes the total size of the entire food processor to be gigantic and relatively heavy.
Moreover, conventional food processors provide only a single feed tube. If different food materials need to be processed, the top cover of the feed tube in different locations is required to be changed. The reason for this is that the food is placed at the center of the shredding/slicing disk when performing juice extraction as the food is being cut and grinded; therefore, the feed tube is commonly formed on the top cover located at the center portion corresponding to the center of the shredding/slicing tools, while the feed tube is commonly installed at a region further away from the center of the shredding/slicing tools when dicing vegetables or grinding meat, due to the centrifugal effect and the requirement of being cut by the knife-edge so as to allow the vegetables and meat to be easily cut after they fall into the container through the feed tube. Meanwhile, the vegetable shredder needs to be in a suspended state for allowing the food material to fall underneath the vegetable shredder. Additionally, the cutting/shredding/slicing tools of the conventional juicer as well as the sole feed tube at the top cover both could not be changed, thus, its function is rather limited. If the user requires to use different shredding/slicing functions, different top covers or different machines must be used, thus causing inconvenience in usage.